Published on the 23/10/2025 | Written by Heather Wright

AI FOMO and the 10 subscription trap…

Gavan Ord wants local businesses to stop chasing hype and start asking hard questions when it comes to technology.

CPA Australia’s business investment policy lead is concerned about tech ROI (return on investment). It’s a big topic for CPA’s members and the organisation’s research shows a low ROI is a key barrier to technology investment – which in turn, is stymying growth.

“If the tech isn’t working, kill it off and move on.”

“If the ROI on tech investment isn’t there, they are not investing in technology – and they shouldn’t be,” he says bluntly. And he adds, quite a lot of small and medium businesses are not getting the ROI from their tech investment, at least in the short term.

“That may be because they don’t have the skills, don’t have the knowledge to choose the right technology for their business, or when they’re investing in technology it’s often just replacing existing technology, rather than embracing new technology.”

In Australia and New Zealand, small businesses in particular are lagging in digital uptake.

“We find that that’s actually impacting their performance,” Ord tells iStart.

Efficiency gains and cost savings – rather than revenue growth – are the primary benefits of technology investment according to CPA research.

“Most technology makes the business more efficient. It reduces costs, but it doesn’t necessarily grow the business and bring in new revenue.”

There are some technologies that are bringing bigger gains than others however. Ord says new research about to be released by the CPA shows artificial intelligence is delivering, as are robotic process automation and CRM software. A close fourth is ERP.

“What we find is the impact of those technologies lead to improved profitability a little bit more than others.

Having FOMO

The hype around AI in particular is driving FOMO for many. Ord shares a familiar scenario: “The boss goes to a conference, sees this wonderful AI product and comes back saying ‘we have to invest in it!’

“And the person who didn’t go to the conference is going ‘hold on, can we look at what problem we’re trying to solve with this technology? How much does it cost? What skills do we need to fully utilise the technology? How does it fit within our existing tech stack?’”

And those, he says, are the questions that need to be asked, but which aren’t always being asked.

“We have examples where companies might take on 10 subscriptions to different AI products when they might only need two,” Ord says. “Some are over-investing in AI at this point in time.”

The result? Bloated tech stacks, overlapping functionality, underutilised tools, wasted spend and minimal ROI.

“They’re utilising maybe 10-20 percent of it. The product might overlap with another AI product they already have, or the AI might already be built into something they have.”

Right now, most businesses are using AI tactically.

“They’re using it to improve how their business operates,” Ord says. “We’re not yet seeing businesses use AI to change their business model.”

That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean expectations need to be realistic. “The benefits we hear from members are more on the efficiency side at this point in time,” he says. “Staff don’t have to do monthly reconciliations in accounting for example.”

That in turn frees them up to do more value adding tasks, providing more intangible, indirect benefits which are harder to measure.

“That’s often the promise of some of the technologies unlocking opportunities elsewhere.”

While some are overinvesting, others are barely dipping their toes in.

“You can’t go from having low levels of tech adoption straight to AI. You’ve got to walk before you can run,” he warns. Small businesses need to look at their entire tech stack, not just chase the AI dream.

And while larger businesses often have procurement strategies to keep spending in check, smaller businesses don’t necessarily have as sophisticated procurement processes, something Ord says may why examples of both over- and underinvestment are being seen in small to medium businesses.

Building a business case

So how should businesses approach software investment when budgets are tight and ROI isn’t always immediate?

“Treat tech like any other assets. It’s something you need to build and sustain. It’s not something you can set and forget. But it is expensive so you need to do a cost versus benefit analysis and identify the problem you’re trying to solve, whether it fits within your existing technology stack, what skills are needed to utilise it, and the cost.”

For SMBs, he says talking to peers is a gold mine, but sharing the bad stories, as well as the good, is crucial.

“You want to know what did work and what didn’t work. One of the best ways to see where the deficiencies are is to ask your peers.”

Independent IT consultants can also provide assistance he notes – but don’t count of the vendors for impartial advice (surprise!).

Engaging with staff, and potentially key customers, to find out their hot button issues and pain points with existing systems.

Once you’ve chosen a solution, keep the implementation tight.

“Don’t let scope creep blow out your costs and weaken your ROI,” he warns.

While subscription models can help spread costs, they come with their own risks.

Ord is a proponent for killing off tech that isn’t working quickly, and moving on.

“That’s harder under a subscription model – you’re often locked in.”

Whether upfront or subscription, the key is to monitor usage and value.

“Make sure you and your staff have the training to fully utilise the technology,” he says. ROI, afterall, will be best when you’re fully utilising the asset.

“Businesses that invest in technology are more likely to be profitable,” Ord says. But that investment, he notes, must be deliberate, strategic and grounded in ROI.

The CPA has been calling for more digital support from governments on both side of the Tasman to speed digital uptake among smaller businesses.

Ord says there are ‘little, boutique’ programs offered by both governments that are ‘small in scale and small in ambition’.

He cites the example of the Australian government proudly proclaiming they had invested $60 million in helping small businesses adopt technology since 2022.

“During the same period, Singapore, which has a population the size of New Zealand, invested $750 million in helping businesses adopt technology over the same period.

“There is a big gap in terms of rhetoric and investment.”

He says Singapore, which he dubs the gold standard, is also spreading its investment from the most basic to most advanced, ensuring that wherever a business is on the digital transformation spectrum, it can get help to improve.

“Our independent data shows that Singapore small businesses are more efficient and more profitable than Australian and New Zealand small businesses. And that has a big flow on to the wider economy and builds skills so they’re can more readily embrace new technologies as they emerge.”